Introduction: Plantaris muscle is a vestigial muscle in human beings. It may vary in its origin, course of its tendon, insertion and the number of bellies. It has a small, spindle-shaped muscle that originates from the lower end of the lateral supracondylar line and the oblique popliteal ligament above the origin of the lateral head of the gastrocnemius. It has a small fusiform belly, 7-10 cm in length, which joins with the medial head of the gastrocnemius muscle and finally inserts into the tendoachilis. Rarely, the plantaris muscle is absent, unilaterally or bilaterally. This vestigial muscle is used clinically in tendon grafting. Aim: The aim of the present study is to study the structural variation of plantaris muscle and its clinical importance. Materials and Methods: The present study was done in 60 lower limbs preserved in 10% of formalin obtained from the Depart ment of Anatomy of a western Odisha medical college. The dissection of the popliteal fossa and the posterior compartment of the leg was done meticulously following Cunningham__ampersandsignrsquo;s manual of practical anatomy. Results: In the present study, it was found that the plantaris muscle was present in 52 lower limbs (86.67%) and absent bilater ally in 4 limbs (6.67%) and absent unilaterally in 2 limbs (3.33%) and tendentious origin in 2 limbs (3.33%). Conclusion: A brief data of anatomical variations of the plantaris muscle is very important for plastic surgeons operating ten don transfer operations, clinicians for identification of muscle tears and radiologists for decoding MRI scans physiotherapists for pain in the calf region.